Contemplations of the lonely
by Nightmare1134
Summary: His first attempt at survival failed. Given another chance, he has been thrust into a decaying world filled with chaos, destruction and war. His companions? An intelligent, cold-hearted slowpoke and a mentally unstable eevee. If there is one thing he must discover before he fails once again, it's that dark isn't always the dangerous entity. It's those who are closest to him.
1. Chapter 1: Prolog

**Author's note:** This is my first story on this site. It may not be brilliant as of yet, but I hope to grow my skills as a writer through CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and practise. Any review is welcome, but unnecessary flaming will be ignored. :)

**WARNING:** This story is not going to be your typical "kid friendly" theme. It touches on more darker themes that some may find offensive. Things such as; swearing, blood, gore, war, death and more. You have been warned.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own pokemon in any way, shape or form. I have no intension to make money out of this story. It is merely for entertainment purposes. I do, however, own the plot and the characters in this.

...Enjoy. :P

...

One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure its worth watching.

_Anonymous_

_..._

It's easier than one may think to die.

I know that many would argue with me for saying it, but it isn't the horrible, agonizing terror that people make it out to be. Human nature is to survive, but when there are no options left to escape death, you just have to learn to accept it and make do with what time you have left.

After all, the moment you are born, you are dying. It's a fate that we must all face at one point or another. Some must face it sooner than others, and some may not fear as much as another person way fear it, but it's still something that humanity has not yet learnt how to escape. It is something that we will probably never learn to escape. As pessimistic as this may sound, it's better that way. Death is, after all, just the next step in life. An end to a cycle and a beginning of another. If we were to find a way to stop it, then what's the point of life to begin with? Without death, how can there possibly be life?

I remember when I died. The memory of it is clear, unlike the rest of my life. I remember the pain in my limbs, the ache in my chest, the feeling of helplessness. I remember lying awake, barely able to keep my eyes open to watch my parents as they talked to me. I remember their words, but that's hardly important at this point. Mostly it consisted of begging. They had begged me not to die. That is something that I, as well as any other person on the face of that planet, could not prevent. I was already on the edge of life at that point, being slowly pushed closer and closer to my fate at every second ticked by. It wasn't a wish I could just grant for them. I was gone, and they already knew that.

Still, I appreciated not being left alone in my final moments. I was a lucky one, to die surrounded by the ones I loved - my family. Even if I couldn't summon enough energy to reply to them, I still took their kind words to heart and clung onto them stubbornly, even after death.

I don't remember much of my life. Though what I do remember are only happy memories. Gathering what is left of the fractured and scattered pieces of my memory, I have concluded that I was never an abused child and I never suffered unfairly at any point in my life. My parents were always caring, loving, and always as a parent should be to their child, a guardian. My life was average. Normal. Just like any other fourteen-year-old boy should live. I wasn't hard done by, but I was nothing special either. I just... existed.

When I died, I was plunged into darkness. It was like being thrown into a dream of sorts, except I was completely aware of everything around me and what I was doing. I was thrown into a void of smothering darkness with nothing more than my body and mind.

At the time I couldn't find myself to be terribly afraid. After all, it was painless. I had been suffering from the end effects of an infection for too long. Why should I care about darkness if it wasn't causing me any pain? Though, it would be a lie if I said I wasn't slightly anxious. I had been separated from my family by the thin wall between life and dead, and on top of that, I was stuck in a strange place with no explanation at all. It made me uneasy.

For a long time I just floated silently, staring blankly into the empty void before me. I had found the lack of pain refreshing and calming, and I didn't care about much else. It wasn't until I finally decided that floating around and doing nothing wasn't exactly a very productive activity to be doing at that point, did I discover that moving was near impossible.

I wasn't just surrounded by darkness, I was encased in it.

It was around that time that a inkling of fear started to swell in my chest. Mostly because I had come to the conclusion that this was death. Just a empty sea of blackness. If I couldn't move, then I would be stuck like that for the rest of eternity. No family. No friends. No existence. Nothing.

Or, at least, that's what I believed at the time anyway.

After what felt like hours, while it could have only been minutes, a voice finally broke the eerie ring of silence. It was like a knife slicing through butter, and it had startled me, but I still managed to listen eagerly to every word this anonymous voice in the dark told me anyway.

"Your soul" they had said, "it is calming."

It wasn't much, but it was the first thing I had heard when I entered that realm of blackness, and I clung to that single voice with my mind as tightly as possible.

It could have been my own consciousness creating a voice for me to help feed the social areas of my mind that were clearly starved for attention at that point, but I couldn't find myself caring. I was just happy to hear something other than my own breathing and I didn't mind responding to a voice that I couldn't put a face to.

"My soul?" I repeated, questioning tone lacing my words.

"It is... white."

Maybe more important questions should have been running through my mind, but I couldn't help but wonder about the voice. It sounded like it could be either gender. If male, he had a very gentle and light voice. If female, her voice was slightly deeper than most other women. It was something I couldn't exactly put my finger on, and that bothered me for some reason.

So, the next question I asked was something completely pointless and irrelevant.

"What are you?...Are you female or male?" I asked into the emptiness, trying to turn my head to search for anything I could stare at other than darkness.

"I am neither male nor female" they replied calmly, "call me whatever you please."

"Well then... what's your name?" I questioned.

"Call me whatever you please" the voice repeated, "I have been called many things and have long since forgotten my true name."

"Fine..." I sighed, "then answer me this; where am I?"

The voice had chosen to be somewhat foreboding and ominous, but I hadn't really cared a great deal. All that mattered, from my perspective, was finding out what was going on and if things were truly meant to end this way.

Unfortunately for me, the voice was annoyingly avoidant as it was secretive.

"Your name" they asked, "what is it?"

"My name?" I repeated, frowning to myself in confusion, "my name is..."

But that's the thing. I didn't, and still don't, remember my name. For some reason, the fact that I had no memories of my identity or history didn't register in my mind until I was actually questioned about it. When I finally drew the conclusion that all my memories had been wiped clear, I felt a small flicker of both shock and anger.

"You have no memory of your past, do you?" the voice asked calmly, and the shimmer of anger quickly overpowered the shock.

"You did this!" I accused loudly, straining every muscle in my body to move and find the owner of the voice in order to glare at them, but to no prevail, "you're the reason _I_'m here! You're the reason I have no memories! What did you do to me!?"

"Fate has decided this, not I" they replied bluntly, "it is something that you yourself must overcome. I am simply here to act as a guide and nothing more, young one."

"Then what?" I had shouted back, "tell me what I need to do! Tell me why this is happening and what I need to do to fix it!"

"This is not something that can be fixed, for there is nothing wrong with it. You have come to the end of one life, and you are starting another one. It is a second chance to prove yourself worthy of your seperiors, since we have concluded your previous chance was unfairly cut short and you deserve another" they explained, "you asked where this is..."

The voice fell into a moment of silence, dragging out the needless tension between the two of us before they finally decided to give me the answer I was searching for.

"This place... it is not the end" the voice finally admitted to me, "it is simply the passing of two worlds. It is the end to some extent, yes, but not in the way that you believe. It is a gate, a rest point, a waiting room."

I almost laughed at the last example, even if it wasn't meant to really be all that amusing.

"It is the end of one journey, and the beginning of another" the mysterious voice finally concluded, "you have finished one life, and now you must continue through to another life. You have spent too long hidden in the shadows casted by those greater then you. This time you have a purpose, a destiny, something to achieve that will effect the way the world works and the beings that live on it."

Although the voice showed no hints of some form of joke, I couldn't help but fight the urge to roll my eyes at the cliche sort of plot being set up right before my very eyes.

Someone with little to no purpose or importance suddenly being thrown into a situation where the world 'rests on their shoulders' and they are suddenly needed by those around them. They go from a nobody to a somebody, and it's always done so smoothly, so easily, as if they never were not needed in the first place. To go from a loser to a hero is something that you only ever see in the movies or in books. Things like that just don't happen in real life, and the mere fact that it was happening to me was completely laughable.

I wasn't weak, but nor was I strong. I was smart enough to survive, but I wasn't a genius by any means. I was ordinary, plain, and I had no real purpose other than to survive. Even that I didn't succeed in doing for too long.

How could I possibly be one of those 'heroes' you so often hear about?

"You doubt this" the voice stated calmly.

"Yes, in fact, I do" I replied, "I won't go as far as to say there are no such things as heroes, because I know that many people do things that most of us wouldn't even dream of in order to help another... but that doesn't mean I believe in a single person having the power to 'change the world', as you put it. There is no such thing as destiny... or fate for that matter. Things like that just don't happen in real life."

When they didn't respond for a while, I thought I had won. My argument sounded solid to me, and I didn't believe they had anything more to say to me. It sounded like I had beaten them with a few short words, and while I was still stuck floating in darkness with no purpose at all other than to stare dumbly in front of my face, I felt proud of myself for beating a random voice that came to me through the blackness.

Looking back on it, it sounds kind of stupid.

"Your nature..." the voice spoke up after about a minute of silence, "what a strange nature..."

"My nature?" I echoed, feeling stupid for believing that I defeated the voice into silence and not quite understanding why they persisted on jumping topics so many times without giving me a concrete response, "what nature?"

"You are... bold" it replied.

"Not particularly" I frowned, confused by the voice's conclusion.

"A white soul and a bold nature" they continued, ignoring me completely, "what a strange combination for a hero such as yourself."

I wanted to argue back, saying that I wasn't the hero it said I was, but they didn't leave any room for me to argue and continued.

"Your new body will be an interesting one to pick..." the voice continued, "bold, like the strong spirit of a fighter, yet pure, like the untainted innocence of a child. This will be a difficult choice indeed..."

"You're mad" I stated simply, but again, I was ignored.

"You do not suit the calmness of a water type, nor do you suit the elegance of a grass type" the voice said matter-of-factly, "you do not have the characteristics of a fire type, nor the wit of a psychic type."

I wasn't entirely sure if the voice was insulting me or not, so I kept my mouth shut and listened intently as they listed my flaws.

"You're not as cunning as a dark type should be, and not as hardy as a rock type" they listed, "nor are you as down to earth as a ground type, or as open minded as a flying type..."

"Anything else you want to add?" I grunted, annoyed.

"I am not insulting you, child" they replied, "I am simply trying to decide what body you would suit best."

"Fine... but at least tell me what's with this 'type' stuff?" I asked, attempting to shift into a more comfortable position once again, but failing.

I had learnt very quickly that the darkness I was encased in acted a lot like a sort of super glue would act. It clung to every fiber of my being and kept me locked in place. I was even unable to turn my head to the side, and that annoyed me greatly at the time. I felt trapped, confused and frustrated, and the voice really wasn't helping my foul mood either. It only added my fuel to the already burning fire.

"You will learn" the voice said simply, "it is very important, so you will learn quickly."

"Learn _what_?" I sighed, annoyance inching up to another level, "why can't you just tell me now and get it over with? Why do I need to learn later?"

"Because to know everything would be dangerous" they explained patiently, "you must learn everything over time. You cannot enter a world with information already. That is why your memory has been wiped out of your previous life. The human mind can only hold so much information."

"Can't I at least keep my name?" I asked.

"You can not" the voice told me, "you are persistent. Persistent like a fighter, bold like a fighter. You... I have decided your type."

"Okay then, fine, tell me, what's my type?" I sighed, not knowing what else to say.

"You will be... a fighting type" they declared, as if I knew what they were talking about, "you have the spirit of a fighter, and then determination of one too. You are strong willed, brave even, and you take things are they come. You are adaptable, hardy to some extent. You are a fighter... a hero."

"I'm not-" I hissed, but I was cut off when they continued.

"It is time. Your type has been decided, as has your nature. You are a bold fighting type, and you will change the world, whether you believe it or not" they told me, "the choices you make will ultimately change people's lives for better or for worse... whichever the case is entirely up to you and your decisions."

"I still have no idea what you're talking about" I grunted.

"Move forward and step through the door" they instructed.

"Move..." I echoed, "how am I meant to do that? I can't even turn my head around to see you!"

"You cannot see me, human. For I, as you have already come to the conclusion of, am nothing more than a voice in your head" they replied, "you have been suspended in darkness for far too long as it is... destiny awaits! Go towards it!"

I attempted to grumble some form of cunning response back at him about destiny and heroes being nothing but entertainment in a children's story book, but found myself suddenly falling forward and all my witty responses hit a dead end and ran dry.

It was a strange feeling, like the glue suddenly melted away and left me standing in the middle of the air, but I didn't rush to the ground like I would have if this were real life. It was almost like I was stuck inside some form of sticky substance, and it was slowly letting me drop downwards and further into the pit of endless darkness. I could move again, but my limbs were restricted and stiff, and I still found it difficult to turn my head in any direction.

After about a minute I was able to take a step forward. Like I said, the action was stiff and hard to direct, but I managed anyway. Though it was a bit strange stepping onto something that didn't exist. I was literally walking on darkness, and that disturbed me more than it should have.

I tried to speak, to ask the voice just what I was meant to be doing, but no sound came out. I spoke, but my words never made it to my ears. It was almost as if the darkness was snatching up any sound that left my lips before it could be heard. My identity had officially been taken from me. No memories, no family, no friends, no voice. I was nothing but a trapped soul stuck in a sea of darkness and a voice that never really gave me any clear answers.

I had no idea what I was meant to be doing, so I walked. It was painstakingly slow and awkward, but I managed to take a few steps before I noticed something in the distance standing out brilliantly against the darkness.

It appeared to be a door. Or, it appeared to be in the shape of a door. It was a square of light that warmed the air and glowed white against the blackness. It could have been dangerous, but I would rather take my chances walking towards a mysterious door then hanging around in the dark world I had woken up in. So, without any further questions in mind, I headed for the light.

Each step was frustrating. It was like being encased in honey, or like walking up a flowing river. It was slow, tiring and awkward, but I pushed on until I neared the light. When I finally arrived, walking became less of a chore and I was able to move much more freely then before.

I had reached out slowly, finger tips brushing against the light, and not unlike how I had died, everything went white.


	2. Chapter 2: The serious and the quirky

**Author's note:** Thank you ConfusedUmbreon for being the first reviewer! :)

**WARNING:** This story is not going to be your typical "kid friendly" theme. It touches on more darker themes that some may find offensive. Things such as; swearing, blood, gore, war, death and more. You have been warned.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own pokemon in any way, shape or form. I have no intension to make money out of this story. It is merely for entertainment purposes. I do, however, own the plot and the characters in this.

...Enjoy. :P

...

We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.

_Harrison Ford._

...

"What is it?"

"Does it matter? Hurry up and gather whatever supplies you can find. If we are caught scavenging around these parts..."

"We'll be killed!"

"...You do not have to sound so thrilled when saying that, you know."

"I wonder what death is like... I bet it's like dreaming, but not really, 'cause I bet we don't dream. So... does that make death reality? Because we don't dream in reality. But we kind of do, because we have hopes and dreams and stuff! So... does that make death reality? Wait! If death is reality, then what does that make life? Is life the dream, or is death the dream? Which is which!?"

"Vee, shut up and search".

"O~kay!".

From what little information I could gather, I could only assume I wasn't home anymore.

The voices I was hearing certainly weren't my family. They clearly weren't my mother or father, and they certainly weren't my two younger siblings. In fact, I didn't recognize them at all. I didn't recognize them, and they both sounded close. Which was definitely worrying.

Startled, I opened my eyes to see who these intruders were and what they were doing in my room so early in the morning, only to wince when my vision was instantly assaulted by dust particles and I was forced to shut my eyes again or risk damaging my sight.

Okay, so I defiantly wasn't home.

"Oh, hey, hey! It moved! It moved! Look, Slade, its alive!"

"Do you _want_ every living creature in close proximity to know where our position is and come to destroy us?"

"But it opened its eyes! It isn't dead! We should help it!"

"Vee!"

"Sorry, sorry..."

I wanted to find out who these two were, but my eyelids felt heavy and my limbs felt weighed down. My body was clearly exhausted, like every bit of my energy had been sucked dry, and I wasn't able to even attempt to discover just what was going on.

Instead, I lay still and listened intently to these two voices.

"Should we help it?" the first voice asked, distinctly feminine.

"Him, and no" the second voice replied bluntly.

I can't really explain it, but the second voice sounded a bit strange to me. It was as though his voice was being projected into my head or something. I just couldn't pinpoint what location his voice was coming from, and although I could understand him clearly, it didn't sound real to me at all. It was almost like a voice inside my head, except it wasn't my own thoughts, it was his.

"Aw, why not?" the female whined, "he could be nice and stuff! Besides, he could help us fight the dark ones! I think he looks like a fighting type, and that could be really useful against them! Besides, look, he's in the lab! He could be just like you-."

"Silence!" the male hissed coldly, cutting her off, "saving him means another mouth to feed and more trouble for us. Just shut up, stop getting distracted, and search for what we need. And if you really _must_ speak, keep your voice _down._"

She was silent for a few seconds after that, but apparently his snarky attitude didn't really seem to faze her all that much and she started up once again.

"We have plenty of food" she stated, "and the more allies we have, the less danger we'll be in! The dark ones would kill us both in a battle, but if we had a fighting type on our side, they wouldn't stand a chance!"

"And what if he is built to fight for them?" he asked, "you would not stand a chance against a fighting type any better than the dark ones would."

"But Slade, look at him!" she said pathetically, "he looks so... harmless! He isn't even fully evolved yet! If he attacks us, you can just pop his brain like a balloon! It'll be so easy! What's the problem?"

"You. You are the problem" he huffed, "you and your increasingly obnoxious persistence to save every single living creature we come across in our travels."

"Slade, please? I'll never forgive myself if we leave him here to die" she pleaded.

There was a few seconds silence that stretched out between the two of them, before the male gave a irritated sigh in defeat that sounded slightly different from the rest of his vocalization.

From that sigh, I could tell where he was standing in comparison to where I was. He sounded like he was standing a few feet in front of me, off to the left slightly, where the female was standing. I'm not entirely sure why I couldn't figure that out before, but it hardly mattered anyway. All that mattered was getting some answers.

"What would you have me do?" he finally asked.

"...I don't know. Read his mind?" she suggested.

"I have already attempted that. His thoughts are all over the place. I cannot lock onto a single thought and decrypt it" he replied.

"Let's just throw water in his face than!" she said cheerfully.

"...No" the male disagreed blankly, "we will not waste water on the likes of him."

"How can you be so cruel?" she whined, sounding horrified at his response, "you don't even know him and you already hate him!"

"I hate everyone" he scoffed.

"Even me?" she asked.

"Especially you" he replied coldly.

Deciding that I had enough of their bickering, I forced my eyes open again, blinking when dust again pricked my sensitive eyes, but succeeding in keeping my eyes open long enough to take in my surroundings.

It certainly wasn't what I was expecting at all.

The room I was in was dark. It was light enough for me to see, but still dark. I could make out the shapes of objects around me, but I couldn't see many details of anything. I appeared to be sitting inside a broken glass container of sorts. It was kind of like a large beaker crossed with a glass cylinder, but it was broken and the glass was shattered, laying in fractured pieces around my form.

I couldn't really tell much from where I was sitting, but I could see the sky from where I was, and the sky itself was enough to make me uneasy. Thick black clouds covered the entire sky, almost like it was about to snow, except there was no snow. It was just a dark sky that shadowed the land and blocked out the sun.

After a few seconds, I started wondering why I was even able to see the sky, and I realized that part of the roof had decayed and broken down, creating a rather large hole in the ceiling that let a very weak stream of grey light enter the otherwise dark room we were all in.

When I remembered that I wasn't alone, I looked down at the two figures in front of me.

They weren't what I pictured at all.

The one on the right was a cat-like creature of sorts. It had mattered brown fur all over its body, and a mane of dirty cream coloured fur around its neck. The creature was staring up at its partner with completely yellow eyes, fury mouth curled down in a hurt frown. I assumed that was the female of the pair.

The second creature was something I really couldn't describe. It was larger than her, and it had faded pink coloured fur instead of brown. It had a yellow coloured muzzle and a white tipped tail. His eyes were light purple and narrowed at her coldly, unaffected by the broken expression she was giving him.

They were... animals. Not humans, animals. Yet, they were speaking clear English.

"But... why are you so mean?" she asked, long ears flicking in question.

"Mean? I am not mean. I do not care enough to be mean. I am merely truthful" he replied bluntly.

I stared at him when I heard his voice and realized then why he sounded so strange. His mouth hadn't moved. He wasn't vocalizing words, he was projecting his voice through some other means. His voice was in my head. In _our_ heads. Which creeped my out more than it should have.

As if reading my mind, his eyes turned to look up at me.

"I am psychic" he spoke, "that is how I communicate."

"You read my mind?" I blurted before I could stop myself, horrified about the fact that he was reading my mind more than the fact that I was speaking to an animal.

"I read a thought, nothing more" he replied, and the brown creature glanced up at me as well, smiling hapily.

"Oh! You're awake! Brilliant!" she said, "now please answer me this... what are you?"

"What am..." I started, then frowned at her, "what do you think I am?"

"...A fighting type?" she guessed, cocking her head a few degrees to the side in question, "a strange looking machop? A... really small grey human? ...A fetus?"

"A... what?... no!" I said, staring at her in disbelief, "I don't even know what a machop is and i'm defiantly not a fetus, thank you very much. I'm a human! Can't you tell?"

The pair shared a quick glance, then turned back to me and regarded me with an expression that one would give a mentally unstable person. I scowled at the both of them.

"What!?" I snapped, "is it really that hard to tell?"

"...Who are you?" the pink creature asked, watching me warily.

"I..."

Again I was faced with the same problem of not knowing my name. I had no idea what my name was, or anything that connected me to my past life. I had no memories, no knowledge of my past existence other than that I had a family at one point, and I still had no idea what was going on.

The voice didn't really explain very much other than that I had a white soul and that my nature was bold... like that of a fighter.

"I'm..." I muttered weakly, "...I..."

"Fine. Do not say. Apparently the simple task of remembering your own name is a chore" the purple eyed creature sighed, then turned towards the female, "let us leave this place. There is nothing of value left here anymore. We must find shelter before night falls."

"Okay dokie" she beamed, then turned back to me and bowed her head slightly, "bye fetus!"

"I'm not a fetus!" I growled, and then frowned when the two turned and started to walk away from me, "wait! Hold up! Don't just leave me here!".

"Why?" the male asked, throwing a glare over his shoulder.

"B-because!" I stuttered.

"...As well thought up and intellectual as your argument is, I do not see why we cannot just leave you here to die" he replied bluntly, "tell me, what would we gain if we bring you along with us? How could you possibly help us in any way? You do not even remember something as a basic as your name".

As annoyingly rude as that question was, he had a point.

I had no idea where I was, what my name was, where I came from, how I got here, or anything about this world. I had no idea what the two creatures in front of me were, or even what sort of creature _I_ was at this point. I had no idea if I could offer anything to these creatures at all, or if I would only act as a burden more than anything.

However...

"...I... can help you" I argued weakly, an idea forming in my mind.

"How so?" he asked.

"I can help you fight the dark ones" I replied.

"You do not even know who the dark ones are" the pink creature scowled, looking irritated; "once again, you do not even know what _you_ are."

"That's true, but I can still help" I said, "if you tell me who these dark ones are and how I can help, I'll do it."

"You do not know what you are getting yourself into, _Timburr_" he growled.

"I know! But it's better than sitting around and doing noth-wait... what?"

I stared at him, confused, and the creature smirked smugly at my cluelessness and turned to face me.

"Yes, I know what you are" he replied, "I know all about you and the rest of those experiments. You are not human. You are not even close. You are a pokemon, like us. It is true that we were born naturally, while you were created in this lab by humans, but we are still pokemon all the same."

The brown 'pokemon' frowned and turned to face me as well, looking confused.

"Timburr?" she repeated, "what's a timburr?"

"He is" the larger creature replied, nodding his head in my direction, "a fighting type pokemon that typically carries around a piece of lumber. Their primary purpose is to aid humans in construction sites, not that there is any use for that anymore."

"I've never seen a timburr before" she frowned, watching me intently.

"They are uncommon in these parts" he said, "timburr and the rest of its evolutionary line originate in Unova. They were created there, and should stay there. Why a timburr is living here is beyond me, but it is definitely unnatural."

"Who cares!" the female exclaimed, leaping back over to me, "he's a fighting type! He can help us! Who cares if he's unnatural? So are we! Timburr, please, we need your help! You'll help us fight against the dark ones if we take you with us, right?"

"If you take me with you, sure" I nodded, "I have no idea how, but I'll help."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she chanted, beaming up at me, "Slade won't admit it, but we really need your help! The dark ones... they have a huge advantage over us, you see! Slade is strong, but they have a type advantage over him! And me... I don't have any useful attacks against them... but you're a fighting type! So you could defeat them with a single hit! Right?"

"R-right" I muttered uncertainly.

"We're saved!" she exclaimed.

"You are..." the male, Slade, started, but cut himself off before he finished the insult and chose to simply shake his head disapprovingly instead, "very well. The timburr may accompany us. But only if he proves to be useful. If he does not, we will leave him for the corrupted to feast on".

"Who are the corrupted?" I asked, shifting and attempting to jump off the table I had woken up on and down to their level.

Slade glanced at the female and glared darkly at her. She shrugged apologetically and then padded over to a stone brick a few feet away from them. With a few nudges of the head, she shoved the stone brick beside the table and gave me easier access to the ground, much to my relief when I realized I had dramatically changed size and body structure.

"The corrupted..." Slade started after a few tense seconds of silence, "are brainless, blood thirsty monsters that constantly roam these lands in search of flesh to feast on. Anything and anyone they happen to come across they will eat without a moments hesitation. They are, without a doubt, our biggest threat these days. Bigger threat then the dark ones, the humans, and the harsh, ever changing climates all put together. They are truly the monsters of this era. Merciless and unforgiving, mindless and savage...".

"Which is just a fancy way of saying zombies" the female added cheerily.

"...What happened to this world?" I asked, glancing between the two of them questioningly.

"It is dead" the pink furred creature replied blankly.

"It's decaying..." she frowned.

"So what's the purpose of living?" I questioned, carefully dropping down from the table onto the stone brick, then turning to face the two of them again, "if the whole world is dead and infested with monsters, why bother? Wouldn't it just be easier to... you know?".

"If you ever say that again then I will personally feed you to the corrupted myself" Slade warned, eyes narrowing dangerously.

I shifted under his glare and avoided his eye contact nervously.

Obviously that was a touchy subject with him, and since I really couldn't risk making enemies with the only two creatures I had met so far that were offering me a place to stay, I made a mental note to listen to his warning and keep my mouth shut about surrendering to the world and letting myself die.

"...My name is Vee" the brown pokemon spoke up, changing the subject completely and shifting the awkwardness away, "that sourpuss's name is Slade."

Slade didn't respond, only glare at her for insulting him.

"What should we call you?" Vee asked, smiling at me warmly.

"Me?" I echoed, hopping down from the brick and scowling when I registered our height differences.

I was only a tiny bit taller than Vee was, and she was standing on four paws. Despite having changed quite dramatically, I still stood on two feet rather than four like the other two. Slade was taller than both of us, but not by much, and he stood on four paws as well. If the other two stood on their hind paws, I was definitely the shortest out of us three.

"I'm not sure" I admitted, shrugging slightly, "call me anything you want... except fetus."

"Hm..." she hummed, looking thoughtful for a few seconds, "what about... hm... this is a difficult one. I'm not very good with names..."

"Timburr will do for now" Slade stated, turning and walking away from us, "names hardly matter anymore. What is important is surviving the night. Come, before it gets too dark and becomes too dangerous for us to leave this facility."

Although I still had many questions, I was satisfied for the time being. I was safe, hopefully, with these two 'pokemon'. I knew what I was, which was apparently some kind of fighting type pokemon called a 'timburr', even though I still had yet to learn what that meant. I knew what world I was in, and it certainly wasn't earth any more. I knew that this place was dangerous, so I had to keep my guard up. I knew that I was stuck with a cold-hearted, serious pink thing and a much-to-happy-for-this-situation brown thing, but at least I wasn't alone. I knew that sticking with these two would be safer than even attempting to live by myself.

All in all, my goal was to stay very close to Vee and Slade, find out as much as possible about this world and survival, then see where I go from there. Maybe I'll stay with them for a long time, who knows? But for now I just needed a safe place to go to for the night and these two could provide it.

So, without any further question, I followed the two creatures quietly, hugging myself as I did so.

The room was freezing, and I was suddenly envious of their fur. It was just so my luck to get stuck as a furless, clothless creature in a cold section of the world. Then again, compared to the much bigger matters, I could hardly complain about the cold. If I wanted to curse luck out, I would have to start with dyeing in the first place, then being transported to a hostile world as a strange creature with no memories other than I was once a human and no proof to show it.

Sometimes it almost feels like fate is just sitting back and laughing at everyone it makes suffer. Must be great entertainment for something so sadistic.


End file.
